An international treaty, signed on 1 August 2003, incorporated the Ai–Ais Hot Springs Game Park in Namibia and|Ai-|Ais/Richtersveld National Park in South Africa, resulting in the establishment of the Ai-Ais/Richtersveld Transfrontier National Park. One of the main features of the combined park is the world’s second largest canyon – the Fish River Canyon. At Sendelingsdrift, on the South African side, a pontoon has been established to ferry people and vehicles across the Orange River. The pontoon has a carrying capacity of a 32-seater bus or two fully loaded double cab 4x4 vehicles.

CREATING OF THE RICHTERSVELD COMMUNITY CONSERVANCY:

The impetus for the conservancy grew out of a field trip in 1997 when the Eksteenfontein Youth Forum went to see the petroglyphs along the Orange River and found that some had been removed and others damaged.

The sense of loss created a feeling in the community that something had to be done to protect the cultural and natural attributes of the Richtersveld. The 1998 Integrated Development Plan proposed that a large section of the Richtersveld be set aside for conservation and a reference group was elected to draw up a management plan.

This process went though three proposals until the Richtersveld community accepted a management proposal in 2004 and a permanent management committee was elected. In 2005 the South African Department of Environmental Affairs and Tourism allocated R6-million for the development of the conservancy and the Richtersveld Community Conservancy was included as part of a proposed World Heritage Site.